Railway-switch stand



L. FACCIUTO, SR-

RAILWAY SWITCH STAND.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 4, 1922.

1,422, 1 9 1 Patented July H, 1922.

UNH'E LUIGI FACGI'UTO, SIR, OF FLUSHING, OHIO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD 'IOLOUIS FACCIUTO, JR., OF LANSING, CHIC, AND ONE-THIRD TO FRANK C. LEON,OF

FLUSHING, OHIO.

RAILWAY-SWITCH STAND.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patent d J l 11 1922 Application filedApril 4, 1922 Serial No. 549,490.-

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Lmcr FAOGIUTO, Sr., av citizen of the United Statesof America, and resident of Flushing, county of Bel mont, and State ofOhio, have invented cer tain new and useful Improvements in Rail mum ofeffort and without bending over it,

the operator may conveniently grasp or otherwise engage it for effectingshifting thereof from one operative position to the other to throw theswitch.

A further object is to provide a simple construction of switch stand formine tracks which may be operated for throwing a switch by the foot ofthe operator as a moving car upon which he rides approaches the switch.

With these and other objects in view, the invention resides in thefeatures of construction, arrangement of parts and combinations ofelements which will hereinafterbe fully described, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a top plan View ofthe invention with portions of the curved frame members broken away;

Figure 2 is a side elevation; and

Figure 3 is a section on line 3-3, Fig. 2.

Referring to said drawings, 1 indicates each of two similar uprightmetal arches constituting members of a frame, each having feet 2 formedupon its opposite ends for mounting in firmly seated position upon asuitable support or foundation adjacent to I the traclrway. Said archesare disposed in parallel relation at a spaced distance apart to affordtherebetween a passageway for the travel of an operating lever 3, aswill hereinafter be explained.

The lever 3 has its lower end pivotally mounted upon a centrally locatedpin 4: carried by a pair of horizontal bars 5 which have their oppositeends received between and rigidly mounted upon the upright side portionsof said arches 1. Said lever projects upwardly between the curvedportions of said arches and preferably has a handle portion 3 formedupon its upper end, whereby 1t may be grasped by hand for shiftingpurposes.

Carried on each of the opposite sides of the lever is a stationary arm.6 to which is attached, as through the intermediacy of an adjustableeye-bolt 7, the upper end of a re tractile coil spring 8, said springbeing engaged with the eye of said bolt. The lower end of said spring isattached to an eyepiece 9*- formed on a pulley block 9, and the lattercarries a pulley wheel 10 in underlying engaged relation to a horizontalrod 11 which constitutes a trackway for said pulley wheel, and which hasits opposite ends mounted in laterally extending arms or lugs 12 carriedin suitable positions, as by the adjacent bar'5 at points adjacent tothe upri ht portions of said arches.

Tivotally mounted upon the pivot-pin 4: at one side of the lever 3 is anintermediate portion of a supplemental lever 13 which has one endportion thereof extending clownwardly in approximate alinement with saidlever 3 and is pivotally attached to an end of the bridle 14 whichconnectsto the switch pointor other shiftable member of the switch (notshown) and through which shifting movement is imparted to such member.The opposite end portion of the supplemental lever 13 is bent or doubledback upon itself, forming an intermediate upwardly extending bow, andhas its end mounted upon the pivot-pin at at the opposite side of thelever 3. The bowed portion of said supplemental lever is dividedlongitudinally by centrally slitting the same and then spreading thethereby-formed bow members 15 apart in opposite directions a distancesomewhat exceeding the width of the lever 3, which latter occupies aposition between said bow members, as shown.

It will be noted that the levers 3 and 13 are mounted upon the pivot-pin4 in a slotlike recess 16 provided between the middle portions of thebars 5 and formed by bowextent of the throw of the operating lever 3,the latter seating against one or the other of the bow members of saidsupplemental lever, according to the direction in which it has beenshifted, as is clearly indicated in Fig. 2. p I

In practice, when the operating lever 3 is shifted from one limit of itsmovement to the other, it carries therewith the supplemental lever 13,effecting reversal, through thebridle 14L, ofthe position of the movablemember of the switch. Due to the fact that thesprings 8 are at all timesunder strong tension, the lever 3 is manifestly held firmly againstchance displacement from either of its opposite limits of movement.During thefirst half of the shifting movement, the tension of saidsprings gradually increases, requiring the application of considerableactuating force, due to the increasing vertical distance of theeye-bolts 7 from the pulley-trackways 11; and when the center ofsuch'movement, at which said springs occupy positions parallel to saidlever, has been passed, saidsprings actuate said lever to instantly moveto the opposite limit of its movement. in such movement, the pulleys 10travel along said trackways 11. i

The throw of the lower end of the supplemental lever 13 is obviouslyless than would be that of a lower end portion of equal length providedby extending the lever 3 downwardly; consequently, said supplementallever permits the lever 3 to have a greater swing in effecting therequisite shifting of the switch and, therefore, provides for the switchbeing more effectually retained in its adjusted position. I

lVhat is claimed is 1. A switch stand comprising a pair of parallelframe members of arch form relatively positioned to form an intermediatepassageway, bars disposed horizontally between the upright portions ofsaid members,

an operating lever pivotally mounted on said bars and having connectionwith the switch shifting bridle, said lever being movable along saidpassageway, retractile coil springs attached to and depending from saidlever, pulleys suspended by said springs, and horizontal trackwaysbeneath which said pulleys travel in shifting movement of said lever.

2. A switch stand comprising, in association with the shiftable bridleof a switch, a pair of parallel frame members positioned relatively toprovide an intermediate passageway, a pivoted lever movable in saidpassageway and having connection with said bridle, a pair ofhorizontally disposed rods, pulleys arranged for travel along the undersides of said rods, and verticallydisposed coil springs interposedbetween said pulleys and said lever and shiftable with the latter, saidsprings tending to maintain said lever at either of the limits ofmovement ofithe latter.

'3. A switch stand comprising, in association with the shiftable bridleof ,a switch. a pair of parallel frame members positioned i relativelyto provide an intermediate passageway, said members being of arch form,a lever extending upward through and movable along said passageway, astationary member having said lever pivotally mounted thereon, asupplementary lever intermediate the first mentioned lever and saidbridle, a pair of horizontally disposed rods,

pulleys arranged for travel along the under sides of said rods, andupright coil springs interposed between said pulleys and the-firstmentioned lever and shiftable with the latter. Q

4. A switch standcomprising, in association with the shiftable bridle ofa switch, a pair of parallel frame members positioned relatively toprovide an intermediatepassageway, said members being of arch form, alever extending upward through and'movable along said passageway,horizontal members having their opposite ends carried by the uprightportions of said frame members, and lever having its lower end pivotallymounted between said horizontal members, a supplementary lever pivotallymounted upon said horizontal members atone side of the first mentionedlever and having 2 depending end pivoted to said bridle, saidsupplementary lever having relatively inclined upwardly extendingportions located forward and rearward of said first mentioned lever andadapted to be engaged by the latter in its shifting movement wherebysaid supplementary lever is shifted said pulley and said lever, saidspring being shiftable with said lever and adapted to draw said pulleytherewith along said trackway,

the relative arrangement of said lever, spring and trackway beindg suchthat the spring is subjected to gra ually increasing tension during thefirst part of the shifting movement in either direction and t0 graduallydecreasing tension during the final part of such movement.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature in presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

LUIGI FAOCIUTO, sR.

Witnesses:

G. D. SMITH, H. E. DUNLAP.

